Every now and again, I hear a health related story that gets me worked up. You know...those stories that make you ask questions like..."are you kidding me?" and "how did this happen?". The kind of stories that break your heart...then make you angry. Well, this week, I heard one of these stories and was compelled to sound the alarm about it; to share this story with all of the folks that I know.

This week's blogimony comes from a bright young woman from my hometown. Her name is La'Crystal. I marched in the high school band with her brothers and remembered watching her grow up. La'Crystal was several years younger than me, but I remember when she graduated from high school, went off to college, and later served in military. See...we are from a small town...the kind of town where parents post there children's awards and honors in the local newspaper and brag about them at the local gas station, high school football games, and of course church. Our community was close-knit; we looked out for each other. So, when I heard La'Crystal's story, I was angry and offended...like she was my little sister. Hers is a story that needs to be told and I am honored that she is allowing me to share it here. Our hope is that those reading this story, will become more mindful of their own health and heed the warnings contained there in...

La'Crystal's story...

"I am dealing with some problems with my heart, not due to my own health. Until recently, I was a relatively healthy individual. To make a long story short, I went to an Urgent Care Clinic near my home for a minor allergy issue...a puffy lip. I have food allergies and my lip had been puffy for 2 days. I assumed that I had accidentally eaten one of the fruits that I'm allergic to. No big deal. When this happened in the past, the Urgent Care Clinic gave me Benadryl and a steroid shot. I'm out in 15-mins. This time however, the clinic staff hooked me up to IV's and oxygen. Despite my protests, they insisted that I needed...5 doses epinephrine. As soon as the first dose was pushed, I went into cardiac arrest... And believe it or not, the nurse tried to administer the other 4 doses. I definitely would have died if she had.

It took eleven hours for them to stabilize my vitals enough for me to be transported. Finally, I was taken to the hospital's cardiac floor and had to stay for 6 days.

It angers me beyond belief that I had no previous heart trouble and now I'm dealing with this due to someone else's mistake. So, I encourage ANYONE to avoid developing heart problems. Being on the wrong side of a heart attack and heart problems is no fun! It's scary, you get exhausted easily, you have tons of limitations. Thank God, my doctors believe that I will recover!

The moral of the story:

1. KNOW your body,

2. KNOW what medicines or treatments you're usually given for a condition, and

3. By ALL means DO question a nurse or doctor if they try to deviate from that plan"